So let’s move on from my fruit experiments and talk about something really important. I LOVE chocolate chip cookies. But I hate when they get hard and crunchy within minutes of being out of the oven. I like soft and chewy cookies, with a little crispness on the edges. And I’m often looking for recipes that will produce this result, but I’m not really successful. Even the classic Toll House cookie recipe gets too hard too fast (which is why I only like making that recipe as a bar cookie–those DO stay soft!)

This past February Food Network Magazine did a special chocolate issue and included recipes for several different kinds of chocolate chip cookie recipes. Even the reasons why subtle changes (cold butter, sifted flour, more brown sugar than granulated) yield different cookie textures. And this chewy cookie recipeactually stayed soft when the directions were followed exactly. Finally! A successful recipe I can go back to!

Ingredients
2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 1/2 sticks unsalted butter, softened
1 3/4 cups packed dark brown sugar
1/4 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs, at room temperature
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 cups semisweet chocolate chips

Directions
Sift the flour, salt, baking powder and baking soda together into a large bowl.
Beat the butter, brown sugar and granulated sugar in a bowl with a mixer on medium-high speed until pale and fluffy, about 4 minutes (use the paddle attachment for a stand mixer). Beat in the eggs one at a time, then beat in the vanilla. Reduce the mixer speed to low. Add the flour mixture and beat until combined. Stir in the chocolate chips by hand. Press plastic wrap directly onto the surface of the dough and refrigerate at least 1 hour or preferably overnight.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Drop heaping tablespoonfuls of dough onto the prepared baking sheets, about 2 inches apart. Bake until the cookies are golden around the edges but still soft in the middle, about 12 minutes. Remove the cookies from the oven and let cool 10 minutes on the baking sheets, then transfer to racks to cool completely.